Sheet metal cabinet shelf support



June 15, 1948. c, ROCKWELL, 2,443,517

SHEET METAL CABINET SHELF SUPPORT Original Filed May 22, 1 944 Patented June 15, 1948 OFFICE. '7

SHEET METAL CABINETSHELF. SUPPORT Lyle Rockwell, Elg'in, 111.,assigmrto Acme Zisilile'Records, 1110., Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Original application May 22, 1944 Serial No. 536,673. .Divide d and this application March 29,-1945,'Serial No. 585,464 a designed for use in sheet metal cabinets of knock- I down construction.

'iheprincipal object of my invention is to provide small sheet metal brackets of novel design and construction which are slotted to fit onto rearwardly' projecting flanges provided on the front edges of the end panels of the cabinet and have lugs entered in holes provided in said flanges to support the brackets detachably and yet quite securely in assembled position. H

The. invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in Which- V Fig. 1 is a top view of a sheet metal cabinet having the shelves thereof supported on brackets made in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one of said brackets.

3 is a top view of the bracket of Fig. 2 shown inoperative position on the end panel of the cabinet, this View being a horizontal section on the line 33 of Fig. 4, and

4 is a side View of Fig. 3 showing the end portion of a shelf in vertical section resting on the bracket. 7

The same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts throughout the views.

Referring first to 1, the reference numeral 5 designates the top panel of a sheet metal cabinet, the rear edge 8 of which is interlocked with the upper edge of the panel l, in the same manner as the side panels 8" are interlocked at their rear edges with the side'edges of the back panel, as indicated in horizontal section at 9 and as fully described in the parent application.

The top panel 5 is connected at its front corners with the upper front corners of the end panels 8 in the novel manner disclosed in the parent application, and hinges ID are provided at these points for the doors II. The shelves 6? with which the present invention is particularly concerned are preferably formed from sheet metal and have downwardly projecting flanges 53 on the side and rear edges, but the front edge of each shelf, as indicated at M, is bent downwardly and then rearwardly so as not to leave any raw edges exposed on the front portions of the shelves. The flanges l3 and channels I 4 reinforce the shelves so that they have the desired strength and rigidity and are not apt to buckle under load. As disclosed in the parent application, upwardly projecting tongues are 4 Claims. (Cl. 248 -243) and 4 for support of the shelves.

z prefer-ably struck out of the back panels 1, and the flange til en the rear edge of each shelf fits down'behind such tongues for support of the shelves at the rear. However, the present invention is principally cohcerhedwitli the brackets ill for support or the shelves at the front.

end panels Shave their front edges 16 bent to channel cross section as clearly appears inFigs 1, 3 and'4. The sheet metal brackets H) are especially designed and constructed for detachable connection to the channeled front edges loaf-the ens; anels 3 and 8' as shown in-Figs. 3 One of these brackets is shown in perspective in Fig. 2, and is made from a single. elongate-d strip of sheet metal,

bent transversely intermediate the ends, as at IT, to form a V, the 01163113111 iii of 'whichprovides the supportin ledge for the shelf, and the other is the proportion. The'ledge portion I8 is c out on one side, as at 23, to define a hook on the outer corner portion thereof that is arranged to be entered in a slot 22 provided therefor on the rearwardlyprojecting flange 23 of the channeled edge' porti-on [S of the end panel I Elcr 8, as the case may be. The brackets 15 will,

of course, be provided of rightand left-hand types, the ones shown in Figs. 2 4 being the righthand type, to 'fl-t the right end panel 8. The lefthand type has the hook 2f on the opposite side oi the ledge portion 59. The brackets l5 have to be held substantially right angle relation to their operativejpositionsi to enterthe hooks 2| in-the slots, or todise'n'ga'ge hooks therefrom, and after a 'bra'cke-t has its hook 2| entered in the 1 slot 22, the prop portion leisadapted to straddle the fiange'ZS, there bein'ga'longitud-inally extend ing slotzd'provided in the lower end portion of the prop, to receive said flange, in the manner indicated in Figs. 3 and 4. The bottom edge 25 of the prop ill has abutment with the inner side of the web portion of the channel l6, as clearly appears in Fig. 4, so that the brackets l5 form steady supports for the shelves. These edges 25 will tend to engage the webs of the channels even before the weight of the shelves is placed on the brackets, because the slots 24 are oil-center in relation to the central vertical plane of the brackets, the slot in each bracket being closer to the hook side, as clearly appears in, Figs. 2 and 3, so that the brackets are unbalanced and tend to gravitate to the position mentioned. The shelves l2, being each supported at the front at both ends on brackets l5 and at the back near both ends on tongues provided on the back panel 1, as stated before, and being furthermore reinforced along all four edges by the flanges l3 and channels I4, will not be apt to sag under load. The bracket construction described, furthermore, permits quick and easy assembling and disassembling, and does not complicate matters so far as the quick assembly and disassembly of the cabinet as a whole is concerned.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of all of the objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims have been drawn with a View to covering all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. In a shelf support for a cabinet constructed of sheet material, a vertical flanged member having a substantially vertical slot provided in the flange thereof, and a generally V-shaped bracket of sheet material made from a flat elongated strip bent intermediate the ends to V-form providing a supporting ledge for a shelf on one substantially horizontal leg thereof, and a supporting prop on the other leg which projects downwardly from the outer end of the first leg in acute angle relationship thereto, the horizontal leg having a hook portion provided on the one lateral edge thereof in the plane of said leg, the hook being adapted to be engaged in the aforesaid slot when the bracket is turned so that said horizontal leg is in the vertical plane of the slot, said hook being releasably locked in the slot when the bracket is turned to operative position after entry of the hook in the slot, and the other leg having a longitudinally extending slot provided therein in a substantially vertical plane extending inwardly from the lower end thereof a predetermined distance adapted to receive the slotted flange of the flanged member.

2. As an article of manufacture, a one-piece sheet metal shelf supporting bracket, comprising a body formed from an elongated generally rectangular piece of sheet metal bent transversely intermediate its ends to V-shape to provide a substantially horizontal shelf supporting ledge portion on the one leg of the V and a supporting prop on the other leg, which projects downwardly from the outer end of the first leg in acute angle relationship thereto, the first leg having a hook portion provided on the one lateral edge thereof, and the other leg having a longitudinally extending slot provided therein in a substantially vertical plane extending inwardly from the lower end thereof a predetermined distance.

3. For use with a shelf and a shelf end member having a vertical portion adapted to support a shelf supporting member, said vertical portion having a generally vertically extending slot provided therein, a shelf supporting member of fiattened cross-section and generally V-shaped in vertical section, providing a supporting ledge for a shelf on one substantially horizontal leg thereof, and a supporting prop on the other leg which projects downwardly from the outer end of the first leg in acute angle relationship thereto, the first leg having a hook portion provided on the one lateral edge thereof adapted to be engaged in the aforesaid slot, and the other leg having a longitudinally extending slot provided therein in a substantially vertical plane extending inwardly from the lower end thereof a predetermined distance adapted to receive the edge portion of the slotted member.

4. For use with a shelf and a shelf end member having a vertical portion adapted to support a shelf supporting member, said vertical portion having a generally vertically extending slot provided therein, a shelf supporting member of flattened cross-section and generally V-shaped in vertical section, providing a supporting ledge for a shelf on one substantially horizontal leg thereof, and a supporting prop on the other leg which projects downwardly from the outer end of the first leg in acute angle relationship thereto, the first leg having a hook portion provided on the one lateral edge thereof adapted to be engaged in the aforesaid slot, and the other leg having a longitudinally extending slot provided therein in a substantially vertical plane extending inwardly from the lower end thereof a predetermined distance adapted to receive the edge portion of the slotted member, said hook portion. having the crotch thereof in substantially the same vertical plane with the slot in the other leg of the shelf supporting member, said slot being laterally offset substantially with respect to a central vertical plane through said shelf supporting member toward the hook side of the shelf supporting member, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

LYLE C. ROCKWELL.

REFERENCES GITEEI The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,829,009 Madsen Oct. 27, 1931 1,852,598 Vogt Apr. 5, 1932 1,872,429 Eaglesfield Aug. 16, 1932 2,297,087 Vanderveld Sept. 29, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 3,777 GreatBritain 1901 

